


The Night is Dark and Full of Terrors

by starktower



Category: Ant-Man (Movies), Black Panther (2018), Guardians of the Galaxy (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst, Fix-It, Forgiveness, Hurt Tony Stark, Multi, Other, Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Temporary Character Death, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Tony-centric
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-30
Updated: 2017-12-01
Packaged: 2018-12-21 17:28:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,618
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11949117
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starktower/pseuds/starktower
Summary: Post Infinity War storyTony is trying to deal with yet another trauma caused to him only this time it was a gift from Thanos.On top of that he has to deal with mixed feelings of having the team back again.Can he forgive. does he even want to. is it worth it.Tony is just TiredTony wants to let go .





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Post Infinity war with flashbacks to the battle.   
> this story is unbetaed so all the mistakes are mine.   
> All criticism is welcome.   
> Enjoy

The night is dark and full of terrors

Tony let out a heavy sigh about how true the words rang as he looked up at the dark sky from where he stood at the rooftop of Stark tower, cold stale breeze caressing his worn-out face.

How could such a beautiful thing hold such horrors.

Thanos.

The Mad Titan.

Tony closed his eyes trying to keep the Panic attack that was looming over him like a sharp sword waiting to be dropped on his head at bay, he could still feel the terror and smell the pungent scent of burning flesh and overflowing blood that plagued a mostly destroyed New York.

 _‘God that was only a week ago.’_ Thought the tired hero as he let out a long exhaling breath.

Tony got closer to the edge as he looked down at the city, full of life, cars driving by, he could see from up here the thousands of gifts that random people put at the entrance of the tower as a thank you for yet another won battle.

 _‘What a bunch of hypocrites, praising us one moment and hunting us the other’_ thought Tony bitterly

People are celebrating all over the world, fireworks, festivals, gatherings, speeches and all the other things you can think about.

Tony doesn’t understand how they can be celebrating, not after what he had witnessed, not after what they’d… what _He’d_ lived through.

Bile rose to his throat at the images that started resurfacing.

 

* * *

 

 

_He could still hear the screams of random people being slaughtered where they stood by the invaders, the cries of his friends and teammates as one by one they dropped like flies, he could still feel the cry that tore from his throat as he saw his Rhodey and Peter being torn and ripped to pieces, he could still feel the despair as he looked around and saw that he and Steve were the only Avengers still standing, him with a badly beaten Suit and a severely wounded Steve._

 

_The disturbing sight of thousands and thousands of bodies civilians and Army more so than aliens sprawled all over the streets has been forever carved in his mind, he could still see the bodies of Hawkeye and Black widow side by side trying to hold on to each other even in death, Tony could still see the pile of dust that was supposed to be Hulk and Thor before Thanos pulverized them with his gauntlet, he could still see and smell the blood that drenched and drowned the buildings surrounding the center of the battle where Scott Lang, then turned giant, had his belly torn wide open by one of Thanos’s commanders, echoes of the agonizing scream that he let out before he crumbled dead taking the falcon with him in his fall and killing him with his sheer weight still resonated in the genius’s mind._

_Vision and Wanda had been already killed when one of Thanos’s commanders came unexpectedly out of nowhere to wrench the mind stone from the android’s forehead instantly killing him, and Wanda in her grief lost control of her powers and took out the whole Avengers compound and everyone in it including herself, Pepper and Happy, the Barton family, the keener family, Peter’s Aunt may, and Steve’s brainwashed best friend._

_A few hours later they received news about the complete destruction of the mysterious kingdom of Wakanda and everyone in it, king T’Challa, the black panther, fought to his last breath but even the power of the Bast God couldn’t save the Country._

_The whole world was under attack and they were losing. Badly._

_The Guardians have also taken heavy hits, only three of them still stood. Star Lord, Gamora and Rocket._

_They needed to finish it now, because they were at the end of their rope, and if they fall, planet earth will be no more._

_Then he remembered._

_Loki._

_The staff against his chest not working._

_Arc reactor._

_Damn it why didn’t he think of it sooner_

_Now is not the time for that, he activated his Com._

_“Steve, you there?”_

_Grunts and crackling were the only things that were heard at first before the com cleared and an exhausted but determined voice of his Captain came through._

_“What do you need Tony”_

_“I think I know how to end all of this for good, but I need you to trust me, can you do that”_

_Heavy Silence plagued the coms for a few seconds, seconds that felt like eternity. They still haven’t talked about the whole ‘Civil War’ Snafu._

_“I do. trust you I mean, always have, always will, now tell me what you need”_

_Tony closed his eyes and let the words work as the balm to his unhealed wound for a moment before he got into battle mode again._

_“Okay I need you to head to where Rhodey’s body is and retrieve his chest plate and helmet, I need you to put them on, FRIDAY will activate the arc reactor and turn it to a superpowered repulsor, what you need to do is aim for Thanos or more precisely the Gauntlet that he’s wearing in his hand, though you should know you’ll have only one shot, literally because after that the arc reactor will be_ _drained, and although I am a good shot, I am not you, I can’t risk it, I can’t risk taking iron man out of the fight”_

_While Tony was explaining, Steve was already heading towards Rhodes’s body._

_“No offense shell head but I don’t think your arc reactor shot thingy can kill Thanos”_

_Tony smiled at the long-forgotten nickname._

_“Oh, it won’t. But I think that the Arc Reactor’s energy is the opposite of the energy that the infinity stones emit, and theoretically they would cancel each other out, just like an EMP, a very powerful and Magical EMP, although it won’t stop the stones for a long time, since it seems that they’re self-sufficient so they’ll be able to restore themselves in a matter of minutes, but hopefully it will be enough to remove the gauntlet from his grip and use it on him”_

_“What!?, are you Crazy Tony, absolutely not” yelled out Rogers incredulously._

_“And what makes you think the repulsor would work on the gauntlet, for all we know we could just be wasting time” continued Steve_

_“That’s why I need you to trust me, I am 87% sure that’ll work just please do it, it’s our only chance Steve, look around you, we’re losing, we will be dead before the sun sets if we continue like this, just please”_

_Steve could hear the desperation in his friend’s voice, he knows the genius is right, if they do not change the tides soon, they’ll die before the day ends._

_The Super soldier just couldn’t lose Tony, he’s the last person he cares about still alive, Tony is the last line Steve is holding on to, and he couldn’t lose him, he just couldn’t._

_Tony heard Steve sigh and he knew he had him._

_“Okay Tony, we’ll do it your way. so, what’s next”_

_“alright, Friday you know what to do, Steve do not shoot until I tell you to”_

_“Roger that, shell-head”_

_And it was proof enough about how dire the situation they were in was when Tony didn’t find it in himself to tease Steve._

_“Star lord, do you copy?”_

_“You left you com open, we heard about the plan, what do you need us to do”_

_Tony was glad he didn’t have to explain his plan all over again, and he was surprised and touched that Quill trusted him easily, it has been a long time since someone did that, not to mention how cool his team was._

_“I need you and your team to do what you do best”_

_“Look awesome while we fight?” asked Peter trying for humor but it fell out flat, his usually cheerful voice was weighted down by loss and fatigue, but Tony appreciated the effort nonetheless._

_“That, and I need you to distract Thanos just enough for Steve to make his move and for me to approach Purple Rain undetected, can you do that?”_

_“Did Stark Dork’s dad try to kill us all?” exclaimed Rocket_

_Peter sighed “You’re never letting that go are you”_

_“Nope, and the answer is yes Tin Man”_

_“It’s Iron Man, you Trash Panda”_

_“That’s enough guys” cut in Steve._

_An idea struck Tony, he silenced his com before he asked FRIDAY to open his com to every frequency available, radios, tv, phones, anything and everything._

_Tony smiled internally before he cleared his throat and spoke._

_“Listen up people, this what we’re doing today, right now is the biggest most important battle in history of mankind. Mankind -- that word should have new meaning for all of us today. We can't be consumed by our petty differences anymore. We will be united in our common interests. Perhaps its fate that today we will once again be fighting for our freedom, not from tyranny, oppression, or persecution -- but from annihilation. We're fighting for our right to live, to exist. And should we win today, the 29th of august will no longer be known as just that, but as the day when the world declared in one voice:_

**_"We will not go quietly into the night!_ **

**_We will not vanish without a fight!_ **

**_We're going to live on!_ **

**_We're going to survive!"_ **

_Today, we celebrate our Independence Day!”_

_As he finished his speech FRIDAY cut the transmission and switched back to the team com._

_“That was beautifully said Tony, and you’re right we’ll be fighting for our independence” Said Steve with a voice full of renewed determination._

_“for our Independence” echoed the others_

_Tony smiled a soft smile at the ridiculousness of the situation, but then the smile fell off at the reminder that none of the people who would’ve called him on that speech were still alive, and that thought alone gave him the determination that seemed lacking just moments ago._

_“Guardians, you’re Up” Declared Iron Man with a clear and Steady voice._

_Tony flew to where an armored Captain America was standing._

_As soon as he landed in front of his former friend he opened his faceplate_

_“Before we do this I wanted to say…” the words wouldn’t come out from Tony’s throat, it felt like they were choking him._

_“Tony?” said an uncertain and concerned Captain America._

_“I wanted to say that I forgive you” Said the engineer and found that he truly meant it, after 2 years since Siberia, tony could finally forgive._

_It had taken a lot of work, a lot of talking, crying, drinking and working, but the Betrayed Man could finally say that he was ready to move past it._

_Steve was looking at him with wide shocked glassy eyes, his mouth wide open._

_“I know that you’ve been trying to make amends and I haven’t been exactly receptive, for good reasons of course, the main one is that I wasn’t ready to trust you again, I didn’t want to, but now I am so yeah, I forgive you Steve for lying to me about my parents and for living me half dead in Siberia.”_

_Before Tony knew it he was enveloped in a pair of strong arms, the same arms that had tried to kill him in that ill-fated Siberian day, arms that had been the star of so many nightmares, but this time instead of inciting fear, they provoked a sense of belonging and warmth, forgiveness and contentment._

_When they parted Steve looked at Tony with reddened eyes full of fondness and gratitude._

_“Can you say that again to me after we’ve won, I really do need to hear it in better circumstances” Asked Steve with a laugh that resembled suspiciously as a Sob_

_Tony smiled “If we win-Sorry when we win” amended the genius at the man’s Look “When we defeat Thanos I’ll tell it to you again and again and again until you believe it, and we’ll also have to try to better our communication skills, and you’re not the only one to have fucked up during the civil war, I’ve done my fair share of mistakes, all of the avengers did”_

_Steve looked at tony as if he finally saw the man for the first time before he smiled and nodded._

_Tony closed his faceplate and patted Steve’s shoulder._

_“Together?” asked Tony_

_Rogers smiled a bright smile and answered_

_“Together”._

 

* * *

 

 

_After that everything was a blur of actions and reactions._

_Tony went around the block to creep on Thanos as he hid behind a burnt-to-a-crisp Car just a couple of feet away from where the Mad Titan was Stationed._

_The Guardians seemed to be doing a bang-up job at the distraction, utilizing Gamora’s connection with Thanos._

_Tony waited for the perfect moment, they only had one chance and Tony wouldn’t waste it._

_Suddenly Thanos threw out his head behind and let out a loud manic laugh before he turned his attention back to a tensed up Gamora and slapped her away as if she was ragdoll._

_‘I think that’s distraction enough’ murmured Tony to himself before he spoke quietly through the coms._

_“Steve, Now”_

_A loud familiar whine sounded in the distance before a large white beam Struck the Gauntlet Thanos was wearing dislodging it from his grip a little, but it was enough for Tony to make his move, he put the thrusters on full speed before he jumped in front of a now Livid Titan, the genius pointed his highly focused lasers directly on the large Alien’s eyes blinding him momentarily, his loud screams reverberated through the whole block, Tony needed to keep the lasers on the titan’s eyes._

_“FRIDAY, I need you to go to sentient mode and continue blinding him with a laser” as soon as Tony said it the suit open enough for him to slip out before it closed again and beamed once again the laser towards the Purple invader._

_As he neared Thanos he could see that the gauntlet was way too high for the engineer to reach it, especially for a man of his stature._

_Tony looked frantically around for anything that could help him, they couldn’t lose this edge just because he couldn’t reach the damn gauntlet, suddenly a familiar red white and blue shield struck a struggling blinded Thanos in the face making him loose his grip and fall on the destroyed concrete, Tony quickly ran towards the gauntlet and snatched it from the loose grip that Thanos had on it, as soon as it was on his hand it shrunk to fit the genius’s much smaller calloused hand._

_He felt its power._

_Alive._

_Infinite._

_He could feel the stones struggling to recover from the arc reactors energy._

_He heard Thanos let out a thunderous cry as he blindly snatched Tony’s Controlled suit and swiftly ripped it apart like it was not made from one of the strongest metals on earth, now without lasers blinding his sight, the mad titan’s bloodied and murderous gaze fell on Tony and the gauntlet that he was wearing, Thanos quickly got up and in one of the scariest scenes Tony had ever seen, the Mad Titan began running towards him._

_He looked around, Steve was still too far away and even with his super soldier’s speed he wouldn’t make it in time. Gamora was still unconscious (hopefully), Star Lord and Rocket were fighting the last of Thanos four horsemen of the apocalypse._

_His body started walking backwards unknowingly, his foot hit something metallic._

_Steve’s shield._

_Tony quickly held it in front of him just as Thanos reached him with a punch from his massive purple fist, the hit fortunately met with the shield instead of Tony’s body but sheer power of the blow ended with the human hero flying away towards a building._

_He could hear Steve screaming his name in the distance._

_._

_._

_Crack._

_Fuck-- broken ribs, a lot of them._

_It was agonizing pain._

_He opened his eyes and saw Thanos looming over him with a feral and wild smile in his face_

_“Puny mortal, thinking you could defeat me, prepare yourself to join the millions of your brethren slain in the name of lady death” said the terrifying alien as he raised his fist for the final blow._

_Tony reflexively brought his hands in front of his face as if to shield it._

_Waiting for the blow to come._

_Just like in Siberia._

_A breath._

_Another Breath._

_Nothing._

_Just like in Siberia._

_He untangled his hands from the front of his face and saw Thanos was still there with his fist raised, only he was frozen in place, everything around him was frozen in place._

_Steve was frozen running towards him._

_Star lord was frozen suspended by the hand of the commander he was fighting hanging him by the throat while rocket was shooting his numerous guns at the alien, Gamora was still out of it frozen sleeping._

_It was as if time stopped running._

_Time._

_Tony raised the gauntlet and there it is the time stone shining a bright enthralling green._

_It seemed like the stones were waiting for him to acknowledge them because as soon as he remembered them they seemed to have invaded his very soul, it was like opening a dam and having the water rushed in you, the sheer power he felt, the infinite possibilities, he could do anything, be anyone, he was in power, he could become a god, better than loki, better than thor, he could bring anyone he wished from the dead, his parents, Rhodey, Peter…_

_Peter…_

_That name._

_._

_.._

_Why do I know that name?_

_._

_.._

_“Thank you so much Mr. Stark, you’re the best”._

_._

_.._

_“You’re coming to my graduation? Oh my god that would be so cool dad. I mean Tony, I mean Mr. Stark, oh god kill me now”._

_._

_.._

_“My uncle once told me, With great Power, comes great responsibility, and that’s why I do what I do, I have this overwhelming power and I can be whatever I want, but I do have a responsibility to use it for good, to help those who need help, I guess that’s what spider Man stand for, helping others just because he can”_

_._

_.._

_What_

_Where_

_Steve._

_Gauntlet._

_THANOS_

_._

_.._

_Tony opened his eyes inhaling as much air as he could._

_The stones_

_They wanted to corrupt him._

_They want to control him._

**_‘submit to us and we’ll give you what you want’_ **

**_‘we’ll bring back your parents’_ **

**_‘you’ll take vengeance on your parent’s murderer’_ **

**_‘submit or die’_ **

**_‘submit’_ **

**_‘die’_ **

_“Shut Up” screamed Tony._

_There was silence, the voices in his head stopped talking._

_It was time to fix all this, once and for all._

_Tony closed his eyes again and concentrated on the gauntlet._

_‘Destroy Thanos and his army for good’_

_He opened his eyes just as time unfroze._

_A piercing shrill began as one by one Thanos’s army began turning into dust._

_Tony turned to Thanos just as he began crumbling like a sand castle._

_“No what have you done mor-“_

_Thanos was gone._

_For good._

_The Eerie silence that followed was deafening._

_Tony looked at the destruction around them._

_Surely, he could fix that too._

_‘restore all what Thanos destroyed’_

_He looked around as stones began to lift from the grounds and go back to their rightful place, he saw building standing once again tall and proud, he saw the cars going back to their true nature, he saw concrete fixing itself, he saw all the fires that were eating the rest of the standing city go out and suddenly New York was good as it was before Thanos._

_Steve was looking around him in awe at the display of power. Rocket was helping a kneeling Peter breath after the choking he was subjugated to, as for Gamora she seemed to be regaining consciousness._

_But everyone else around them were still unmoving mutilated corps._

_Come on tony you can do it._

_‘revive every dead, heal every wounded, have them just as they were before Thanos’ tony paused before he continued ‘Here and on every other realm Thanos destroyed’._

_The Power coursing through tony was agonizing, he had never felt such pain, not in Afghanistan, not in the battle of New York, not with Ultron, not in Siberia._

_No this is like every cell of your body was being torn away over and over again, but he had to push through it._

_For the sake of the universe._

_For the sake of earth._

_For the sake of his family._

_Tony could hear someone screaming, it sounded like him but he couldn’t be sure, the pain numbed everything else._

_After what felt like an eternity, the pain started to dull down until it stopped completely, after his blanked by pain vision came back he saw Steve’s scared baby blue eyes gazing at him with concern his big hardened hands framing Tony’s sweaty and tired bloody face._

_“Tony, hey, hey look at me what did you do, Tony” Asked frantically Steve as he shook an almost out of it genius_

_“I fixed it” answered Tony with broken raw, from the screaming, voice._

_“What-“began to ask Steve before he stopped at the sound of hundreds of grunts._

_They looked around and saw the previous mangled and bloody corps all healed up and beginning to stir._

_“Oh god” exclaimed Steve as he brought his hand to cover his mouth stopping the overwhelming hope from crushing him he turned towards Tony._

_“All of them?” asked the Man lost in time with a voice just above a whisper._

_An almost completely worn out Tony smiled and nodded “I believe so”_

_He was yet again embraced by a hard wall of muscles as Steve hugged him from behind._

_It felt nice to be held like that back against wide chest._

_He Felt safe._

_Tony laughed tiredly “you know we’ve known each other for six years and you’ve only hugged me twice, both were today”_

_He felt the rumble on his back caused by Rogers Laughter “Well get used to it Tony, because they’ll be a lot more hugs in our future, thanks to you”_

_“To us, all of us. --and I wouldn’t mind that” Admitted Tony shyly._

_Steve tightened his hug at that statement._

_Getting all sort of confused, Tony untangled himself “okay big guy, you need to go check up on the others”_

_He looked to where Quill was and found him hugging his returned from the dead teammates._

_Tony looked back at Steve and found him about to refuse but held up his hand before the blond could speak “I am fine, I’ll be right behind you, besides the others are going to be confused and you wouldn’t want confused avengers on our hands, think of Thor, oh my god think of Natasha”_

_Steve eyes widened just a fraction but Tony spotted it._

_“yeah you probably right, are you sure you’re alright?” asked Steve as he got up from the ground._

_“As I can be considering, but seriously go” reassured Tony._

_Steve looked at him intently before sighing and nodding and made his way towards where the others should be but not before kissing tony on the temple making Tony blush_

_“You big dork” murmured Tony under his breath when Steve was far enough but from the way the Blond turned and gave him a big smile, he heard it alright making Tony blush even harder._

_As soon as Steve disappeared around the block Tony’s smile slid away from his face, the stones were screaming in agony of being used and not being in control, he could feel the rage and desperation, he knew for a fact that it won’t take them long to be in control again, and Tony after seeing their destruction wouldn’t let it happen again, he looked at the gauntlet still in his hand, there were only five left, the mind stone returned to vision._

_He looked at the time stone, and as if it heard Tony’s mind (which is probably what happened in hindsight) it disappeared to its rightful guardian._

_Only four remaining._

_The Space Stone_

_The Power Stone_

_The Reality Stone_

_The Soul Stone_

_They were still too powerful and they were impossible to destroy, the gauntlet on the other hand…_

_At the thought the stones screamed even louder, but they quieted at Tony’s order._

_Tony could feel himself beginning to be affected by the power._

_He needed to do it now and end it_

_‘I want the gauntlet to be destroyed forever and for these four stones to be hidden each in a corner of the universe where no one dead or alive could find them’_

_At first nothing happened, but then the gauntlet began to tremble harder and stronger each time until it began to crack, a ball of light and energy so pure Tony could hear it humming, the ball began to expand until it engulfed tony inside it, before soon the gauntlet shattered into a million of pieces, and the four stones hovered brightly in front of tony. Each with a beautiful distinguished color, they began to shine brighter and brighter until everything stopped and then The ball collapsed on itself._

_Tony saw only darkness_


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i am so fucking sorry for the Long, Long wait, but writers block is a bitch. like seriously i have been struggling to come up with this, and i am not even sure about this chapter, ugh.   
> anyway enjoy.

Tony let out a heavy sigh as he shook the events that happened the previous week out of his head not wanting to trigger a barely kept at bay panic attack.

But to no avail.

“Son of a bitch” exclaimed frustratingly the genius as his breath became sharper and shorter.

After he had destroyed the gauntlet Tony had passed out, he really thought that was it for him, the way the blinding light emanating from the gauntlet had felt like it was tearing him apart cell by cell, the pain had been excruciating before he lost consciousness, only he didn’t die like he had thought he had woken up with Stephen Strange peering over him, apparently the Doctor/Sorcerer opened a portal for Tony at the last minute to slip through, but Tony had not gotten out of it unscathed, the Hero suffered several broken bones all over his body, plus some overexposure to the stones that gave him some kind of magical radiation poisoning (did he tell you how much he hates magic), which meant that Tony had to remain in Kamlan until he healed and with the help of some voodoo from Stephen it had taken only a week.

Tony had spent his days trying to come to term with the War they had almost lost against the mad Titan, he had been trying to come to term with the fact that he saw almost all the people he cared about being slaughtered like cattle, the screams, the smells, the blood. The distraught genius could remember everything like a loud echo never fading away and only getting stronger. A part of Tony knew that they were all alive and well back in the states, but a big part of him was still mourning their deaths, he had been so filled with grief that the sheer weight of it kept him bed ridden for most of his stay in Kamlan, he had woken up screaming for his friends and his family, screaming for the people they were supposed to save.

Tony was Broken.

How could someone come back from that much loss and horror.

He also wondered what the civilians were going through in the Aftermath of the War, the ones that have seen their friends and families dying only to have them back safe and sound like nothing had happened, what about the ones who had felt themselves die only to come back again like their bodies hadn’t just been cold and lifeless moments ago.

The genius is pretty sure that psychologists and psychiatrists will be working overtimes for years to come.

 And now, a week after the final battle with the big bad wolf, here he was on top of Stark Tower thanks to Strange portal, delaying apprehensively for what Tony had no doubt would be an interesting meeting.

“Friday, Bring me the suit”

**“Right away boss”**

A couple of seconds later on of Iron Man’s older suits encased the engineer completely seeing as  the current one had been destroyed, Tony immediately blasted his way towards the upstate New York facility. 

The last time Tony had set foot in the Avengers compound was when all the remaining avengers and the newly (under dire circumstances) pardoned avengers plus some other new allies had gathered around to plan the last battle against Thanos.

To say they had been exhausted would be the understatement of their lives, they had been pushing waves after waves of Chitauri armies for almost a week straight, the avengers had been so run downed that they had all but forgotten about their previous ‘disagreements’, well almost, Rogers had been keen on speaking to Tony in private only to be refuted again and again but the man was stubborn, tony had to give him that.

Iron Man hovered over the compound just contemplating the building that had been a giant crater the last time he saw it.

So much had happened in that building.

So much hurt.

So much Love.

So much History.

After the whole mess that was the ‘Civil War’, Tony had set F.R.I.D.A.Y. on intelligence and evidence gathering on anything to do with General Thaddeus Ross, he had eventually succeeded in exposing him to the world with the help of his Baby girl and surprisingly Ross’s daughter Betty, stark had taken advantage of the backlash that ‘Ross’s trial scandal’ had engendered to revise the Sokovia Accords completely -like was the plan from the beginning- with, this time, crucial input from the main concerned parties, superheroes from all over the world, it had taken months and months of meetings all over the globe, months of playing politics, months of hearing the concerns of the Superheroes and Civilians alike, Months of new acquired Allies and blooming friendships, of broken off engagements and heartbreak, but it had all been worth it because ten months after Ross had been sentence to life without parole, The Super Humans Civil Rights Accords had been presented to the world, accords that had garnered the approval from both ‘opposite’ sides, accords that’ll allow accountability without taking away human rights, whereas the Powered people have as much say as any other civilian and stand at equal footing.

The Avengers had been the first to sign it, Tony, Rhodey, Vision, Carol and Hope being the Primary permanent rooster, and the temporary one being composed of Doctor Strange, Spider man, Daredevil, Luke Cage, Iron fist and Jessica Jones.

For the next following months, the Accords began gaining traction as more and more powered people from all over the world began signing the documents allowing superhumans in a short period of time to have a significant stage and voice to protest against the crimes, racial segregation and discrimination that they have been subjugated to for as long as they had existed, it had started movements all over the world in support of equal rights and against any kind of discriminations, the 147 countries that had signed the SHCR accords had already started passing laws protecting and integrating little by little their powered Civilians into their everyday lives.

Not saying everything is rainbows and unicorns, there are still people who think of the powered people as freaks and discrimination is still happening, having powers is still a crime in some countries that had not signed the accords, and so much more things that need changing but those will take time, but what these new accords have and are accomplishing is several steps forward in the right direction.

 

 

Tony let out a long exhaling breath before he landed on the neatly cut down grass and disengaged from his suit, he was wearing worn out jeans and a nirvana T-shirt.

Time to face the music.

 

* * *

 

Tony made his way to the commune area where the avengers usually hung out but to his surprise the only people that were present were Laura and the kids, Maggie, Jim, Cassie, Happy and-

“Pepper?” whispered Tony voice thick with emotions, all these people had died in the explosion that took out the compound, yet here they were standing in front of him eating pizza of all things, the woman that Tony loved (loves) is standing in front of him beautiful as ever, even though he only whispered her name from the way she quickly turned towards him she must’ve heard him.

“Tony?”  asked Pepper with clear relief and disbelief in her voice before she ran towards her friend to envelop him in the tightest hug she ever gave him.

“Oh my god, you’re _here_ ” exclaimed Pepper as she buried her face in Tony’s shoulder while holding him for dear life.

“Uncle Tony” came the high-pitched voice of Lila, cooper and Cassie in unison as they ran towards Tony and hugged his waist.

Those two words never failed to melt Tony’s heart.

The overwhelmed engineer detangled himself from the arms of his former girlfriend and crouched down to fully embrace the kids

“Hey, kiddos” Tony tightened his arms around the kids and closed his eyes shut and just let himself feel the little preciously fragile bodies of his -in all but blood- nieces and nephews.

                 ***********************************************

**_“Boss, you have an incoming call from an unknown number to your personal cell.”_ **

_Tony had been in the middle of going through all the evidence on Ross that he had, preparing for the upcoming trial when F.R.I.D.A.Y. had interrupted him._

_Tony frowned as he looked at his watch, 1:17 am_

_“Can you trace its origin”_

**_“I already tried boss, but it seems to be an untraceable device”_ **

_Tony heart skipped a beat, could it be Rogers, but that wouldn’t make any sense F.R.I.D.A.Y. had said the call was to his personal cell not the one that Rogers sent him._

_Curious Tony answered the call._

_As soon as the line opened he could hear the sound of a baby crying_

_“Mr. Stark?”_

_Wait is that-…_

_“Laura?” exclaimed Tony as he recognized the voice._

_“Yeah, I am sorry to call you at this hour, I know that you don’t owe us anything, but I didn’t know who to call” her usually calm and soothing voice was strained and edging on hysterical_

_“No that’s alright, what’s going on Laura, is everything okay?” Tony’s heart began to beat faster._

_“I-I need your help please, there-There’s a man that has been casing the house, he is armed and I don’t know what to do, I grabbed the kids and I locked us in the basement, I tried to call Clint and Natasha but their numbers had been disconnected and Clint had given me your number a while ago, I didn’t know what to do” Laura’s voice is tight trying not to show fear in front of the kids but tony could hear it loud and clear._

_“F.R.I.D.A.Y. give me the suit now, Laura I need you to stay calm okay I am coming in less than 10 min, just hold on. I won’t let anyone hurt you or the kids you have my word, stay in the basement with the kids and don’t open the door until you hear me, understood?” Tony was airborne before he finished the sentence._

_“Oh thank god, thank you so much Mr. Stark, you hear that kids Iron Man is coming for us” the relief in her voice broke Tony’s heart, it was as if she hadn’t expected him to come for her and the kids. Tony didn’t know how to feel about that._

_Before he knew it, he was landing at the Barton Farmhouse porch._

_“F.R.I.D.A.Y. scan the perimeter and send in the tranquilizer armed scouts after the intruder” as soon as he said it a small plate from left shoulder lifted up and released tiny flying spheres, Tony had developed them to neutralize the enemy with less blood and with more stealth after a particular mission had gone haywire 3 weeks prior._

_“What’s the ETA on the jet?”_

**_“Two minutes out Boss, I just located the invader, he’s descending towards the basement where I am detecting four crouched down heat signs, I am sending in the TAS, time of impact in 3…2…1…”_ **

_A faint thud was heard in the distance._

**_“Target neutralized boss, the house is clear”_ **

_“Sentient mode, and keep on the lookout for anything, if this guy managed to track down Barton’s family I don’t want to take any chances”_

_Tony got out of the suit and made his way for the basement in a hurry, the guy was unconscious and crumpled on the step leading down, Tony stepped over him and raced towards the door where the Barton Family was hiding behind._

_“Hey Laura, it’s Tony, open up”_

_Tony heard noises coming from the other side of the door, but he couldn’t discern them over the sound of his heart beating in his ears, as soon as Laura opened the door he was pulled in a tight hug, one that he returned readily._

_Laura was sobbing into Tony’s shoulder and muttering indiscernible words._

_After they parted, tony headed towards the kids._

_“Hey kiddos, are you alright?”_

_Cooper who was holding a sleepy Baby Barton in his arms nodded eyes glassy with unshed tears obviously trying hard not to cry, Lila on the other hands had no qualms about that since fat tears were strolling on her puffy cheeks, Tony didn’t think about it twice as he gathered them in his arms hugging them tight._

**_“Boss you need to leave the premises now, I just detected explosive devices of some kind have been planted all around the property”_ **

_Tony jumped into action, adrenaline coursing through his veins “How much time do we have”_

_“what’s going on” asked Laura looking haggard._

**_“The Jet has already landed and ready for you, I already transferred the intruder in the holding cell, you have 2 minutes Boss.”_ ** _Oh god_

_“Laura, I need you to get the kids to the Quinjet ASAP.”_

_“What, why, what’s going on”_

_“Bombs planted all over the Farm, we don’t have time we need to go now” frantically said tony as he ushered the frightened family towards the exit._

_“F.R.I.D.A.Y. Start up the jet and as soon as we enter the aircraft, floor it”_

**_“You got it boss”_ **

_They raced upstairs, Tony with both Lila and Cooper in his arms, while Laura had Nathaniel._

_As soon as they got into the Quinjet Tony yelled “get down on the floor” the aircraft lifted instantly in the air just seconds before a massive explosion took out the whole farm, it was so powerful that the jet shook violently from the shockwave, if they had been just seconds longer they would not have survived it._

_As the Quinjet righted itself and steadied, Tony and the others got up and immediately went to the windows, there was only a huge crater left where the farm had stood just a minute ago._

_……………………_

_It had taken a couple of days to get Laura and the kids settled in the compound, they had been in shock and it will take them sometime to get passed the whole ordeal._

_The assailant apparently had been in some sort of mind control/brainwashing, it was temporary, had to be administrated every few months or else it would fade away, and conferring to the multiple scans F.R.I.D.A.Y. had done it seemed to have been going on for almost five years. Tony thought of Barnes and felt a twinge of guilt, but he quickly pushed it away, now was not the time he thought to himself._

_But the biggest surprise had been when three days after the failed assassination of the Barton Family, Laura finally could face the man that -unwilling or not- had almost killed her and her kids, and had recognized him with a shocked expression and pale face as Barney Barton, Clint’s older brother who was supposed to be dead for -yes you guessed it- 5 years._

_Tony had wanted to call Clint as soon as he got the chance, but the last few days had been filled with chaos from every other corner, but after that shocking plot twist, tony had asked Laura to call Clint but she had refused to talk to him (understandably) and thus it had fallen on Tony to do it._

_Great._

_That afternoon Tony went to his office and took the Phone that Rogers had sent him a couple months back out from his desk drawer._

_6 missed calls._

_Tony’s heart began beating frantically as he checked the missed calls history_

_4 calls at random dates in the last months._

_2 calls in the last 3 days._

_Tony closed his eyes and pressed the call button before he brought the phone to his ears._

_Beep._

_Beep._

_Beep._

_*crack*_

_.._

_“Tony?”_

_Rogers_

_Breathe,_ Breathe _,_ **FUCKING BREATHE** _._

_“Tony, a-are you there?”_

_He’s my friend_

_Did you know? Yes_

_Breathe._

_I can do this all day._

_Breathe_

_Breathe_

_Tony finally took a fortifying breath_

_Cold air filled his burning lungs._

_“Yeah I am here”_

_“Are you okay? I’ve-“_

_“I need to speak to Clint” Cut in Tony_

_Silence._

_“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Clint isn’t with me”_

_Lying. Always with the lies, anger surged hot “Oh cut the bullshit Rogers, I know you’re all playing possum in Wakanda, so don’t fucking dare lie to me._ Again _. But that shouldn’t surprise me coming from you, got to say you’re way better at it than I ever gave you credit, now give me Barton, it’s urgent.”_

_He could hear Steve sigh on the other hand._

_“I am sorry Tony, I really am, you have no idea how much It killed me to hurt you, and I will regret it for the rest of my life, as for Clint I am not sure it’s a good idea, he’s- he’s not doing well, something happened a couple of days ago and he’s not doing okay. At all”_

_“Fuck, he’s heard_ already _, how?”_

_From the sudden take of breath on the other side, he guessed Rogers must’ve been surprised  Tony knew._

_“Uh, Natasha called and told him. You knew?”_

_“That’s what I am calling about, now tell him it’s important, I’ll wait.”_

_He could practically feel the way Rogers held himself from saying anything more._

_“Yeah okay, hold up, I’ll call you back” the line went dead._

_The Phone rang a couple seconds later._

_“Barton?”_

_A horse voice answered him_

_“Did you catch the son of bitch who did it”_

_It tugged at his heart to hear his former friend beaten and defeated like he was right then._

_“They’re alive, Laura and the kids I mean, they are Alive and well”_

_He could hear the sharp intake._

_“What? What are you talking about Stark, is this some kind of joke, is that it, is this your sweet revenge huh, is this how you get back at me for siding with Steve, because that’s a new low even for you, you son of bitch, I wish I had put an arrow right between your eyes in that airport, the world would be better off without a murderer like you, look around you Stark, your girl abandoned you like a beaten dog, and the only people around you are a cripple bastard and a non-human freak who doesn’t know shit, mark my word you bastard next time you see me I’ll put an arrow right through your heart” The words were said with such hatred and disgust that Tony had to take a moment to get his bearings again._

_Come on stark breath. The man thinks his family is dead, he’s lashing out. Just breathe._

_Tony cleared his throat._

_“Laura called me at 1:17 am three days ago and told me about a man that was outside of your house armed, she was scared, she had called you and Natasha but your numbers were disconnected so she called my personal cell, I got there as soon as possible, I took out the intruder and got Laura and the kids out of the house because the man had apparently rigged the whole farm to explode, we barely made it, but they are here with me, in New York, in the Avengers compound” Explained Tony with a steady emotionless tone that surprised even him_

_“What- how, put her through. Now. Please, oh god, please Tony, Lila- coop, Jesus I- “_

_“that’s not all Mr. Barton, the Man that attacked your family was your Brother, Barney. F.R.I.D.A.Y. had gathered enough evidence to make us believe that he was held, and mind controlled for the last Five years, he’s being held here under medical scrutiny, we have hope that with time he’ll probably fully recover. Mrs. Barton has expressed her reluctance to speaking to you for the time being, but she promised she’ll call you in the next few days” Barreled on Tony without inflicting any emotion into his voice_

_“Tony-“whispered Barton with a broken voice._

_But tony would have none of it_

_“And the next time you call Vision or Rhodey, freak or cripple, I swear to you I’ll come to Wakanda and put a bullet in your head” said tony with a growl before he hung up and threw the phone to the wall shattering it completely._

_That felt good._

_And that was the last time he spoke to any of them until Thanos came into the picture._

_Laura and the kids moved into the compound for good and with time Mr. Stark became Tony and when he went to bring in the Lang family Laura went with him as a support. Maggie, Jim and Cassie moved in too, permanently as well and with broken pieces they made their own makeshift family, where everybody fit just right._

_Laura had become the compound supervisor, while Maggie became the official liaison between Stark industries and the Avengers, as for Jim he had become the official coordinator and link between the Avengers and the Law enforcement, which made thing easier for the co-leaders of the Avengers Colonel Rhodes James, and Commander Danvers Carol._

_And the Rest was history._

_***********************************************************************_

They had been dead.

Oh god.

Tony screwed his eyes even more trying to bar the panic attack that’s threatening to overwhelm him.

God, they had been all dead, and he couldn’t do anything, he had been too late.

Breathe.

In.

Out.

In.

Tony was snapped out of his state by a big strong warm hand on his shoulder squeezing him.

Jim.

Their relationship had surprised both parties, they didn’t have much in common, yet they had developed a deep sincere friendship, a companionship that left them both sated.

“Hey Tones, it’s alright, you’re with us now” said Jim as the Taller man guided Tony towards him for a warm embrace that left nothing unsaid between them, both clutched each other tightly communicating everything they wanted to say to each other with just the gesture.

When they parted Tony hugged the rest of the people in the room.

“It’s good to see you guys, I’ve missed you so much” croaked Tony, his voice oversaturated with emotions.

“You okay Tony?” someone asked, who? Tony didn’t know and at that moment didn’t care.

“I am as far from okay as one can be, but I- I am getting there now that I can see you” admitted Tony, after what they went through Thanos after he’d seen most of the people he loved die, this feels like a second chance, and he’d be damned if he let his insecurities and masks get in the way. And as they say, ‘in for a penny, in for a Pound’

“You were all dead, all of you, practically all the people that I cared about had been dead for days just a week ago, at the very end there was only me, Steve and what was left of the guardians, and I’ve grieved and it was awful because I didn’t know who to grieve for, I was mourning and a big part of me still does and it’s so hard seeing you right now, but also such a relief that I don’t know what to feel, I am not okay and I don’t think I’ll be okay for a long time” finished tony with a cracked voice.

Tony couldn’t meet their eyes and Before anyone of them could speak he got up and stalked towards the conference room where he was sure the Avengers were gathered.

 

 

 


	3. Chapter 3

Tony was nervous and edging towards panicky, eyes dancing to every corner of the Grey Painted Room where the avengers were currently seated. All eyes were riveted on him, and anyone who had been talking quieted down. Too many people Tony had trusted once only to have it broken were in the same room as him.

Looking right at him.

It soon became too much; his breathing and heartbeat began to quicken and fill his ears with white noise. He found himself backing away from them, but forced his body to stand still. It didn't quite work, as he found himself backing away slowly, and a cold sweat had broken out between his shoulder blades, Tony felt like a prey inside a cage full of ruthless predators, he couldn’t turn his back on them, he doesn’t trust them.

But before he could get away to somewhere safe, somewhere he could breath, somewhere he could slow his heartbeat down because it felt like at any moment Tony will have a full blown Panic attack, and he’ll be damned if he broke down in front of these people; but before he could get away a strong body enveloped him in a tight embrace, his body tensed up at the ‘FALL BACK’ screams his brain was yelling at him, as he tried to extract himself from the suffocating embrace, his brain registered the familiar smell of the person holding him, the scent of the man that held him in many occasions throughout the years, the subtle earthy smell of wood and cinnamon, that tony became so familiar with, Rhodey.

James.

His best friend.

His Brother.

He had been dead. Tony had watched him die, helpless.

He was dead.

But no, here he was as strong as ever, and holding him.

Tony’s body melted into the embrace and tucked his face into Rhodey’s shoulder and inhaled the intoxicating smell of warmth and safety and closed his eyes not wanting to let the tears welling up in his eyes out.

“Hey Tone, you’re here, you’re okay, you’re safe buddy” Rambled Rhodey wanting to comfort his clearly distressed best friend as he squeezed him for dear life, not wanting him to escape his sight not after he thought Tony dead in those first couple of days after everyone’s ‘resurrection’.

It had probably been the worst days of Rhodey’s life. Everyone had been alive except for Tony.

That until they got a call from Doctor Strange telling them that Tony was alive but fighting for his life, and no they couldn’t come for him because he had been suspended in a ‘parallel plane where time doesn’t exist’ (because that’s their life now) which is the only way he could save Tony from the side effects of wielding the Infinity gems and the Gauntlet.

But here he was now in his arms trembling and on a verge of a panic attack, but he was here, and that’s what keeps Rhodey from Crumbling down screaming and crying at the universe for making Tony its punching bag.

“You were dead Rhodey… I couldn’t catch you- I never do – I am so sorry, please _please_ don’t die on me again, I swear I can’t take it.”

Rhodey fought back against the broken sob that almost managed to escape his throat.

He couldn’t open his mouth.

So he just buried his nose onto Tony’s hair and squeezed him harder.

“Mr. Stark” came a small shy and uncertain voice to their left.

Peter.

Tony extracted himself from Rhodey and promptly grabbed the teen by the shoulders and roamed his hands to make sure Peter wasn’t hurt anymore, to make sure there were no longer deep gashes in the kid’s body, gashes that led to his death. Peter had died right between Tony’s arms.

Tony shut his eyes tight at the onslaught of images that came barreling forward, he sighed before he framed Peter’s face with his calloused hands and kissed his crown.

“You’re okay kid” kept repeating Tony before he finally remembered that they were other ‘less than savory’ people in the room.

He turned towards them, they were all there, His team and the no longer rogue ones, plus (to the absolute surprise to no one) Fury and Coulson.

“Hey guys, it’s good to see you again” he said with a tense voice to everyone but only kept looking at his team.

He got some uncertain nods and some various hellos and how-are-yous and good-to-see-yous, some more enthusiastic than others.

“Now that we got the tearful reunion out of the way, why don’t we get to the point of this meeting” Cut in Fury with a grumbling voice.

“Yeah, what _is_ the point of this meeting exactly” asked Barton with a curt voice, clearly uncomfortable with the situation. ‘Join the fucking club’ thought Tony.

“The point of this meeting, Mr. Barton is you”

“Me? what did I do?” asked incredulously Clint while pointing a finger towards himself.

Fury seemed to be holding the urge to roll his eyes “I meant all of you, we’re here to hash out everything that went wrong and why it went wrong, we’re here to see if there a possibility for ‘team cap’ as the masses so eloquently calls you, to join the current rooster of the avengers now that you are fully pardoned and not playing thief and cop”

“the _Possibility_?” piped up Wilson.

“Yes the possibility Mr. Wilson, you may recollect that the last time you didn’t quiet worked well together, so this meeting is to have everything that went wrong or not in the open, and I mean by everything because apparently it’s too much to ask of you to do it without anyone to hold your hands, so that’s what me and Nick are doing here” answered Coulson as he looked at everyone

‘the man has a point’ thought Tony.

“But first we’d like to ask you Mr. Stark a question” continued Coulson “What exactly happened” he didn’t specify what he was talking about, but he didn’t need to.

After a moment of silence as Tony gathered his scrambling thoughts he looked up towards fury.

“Everyone was dead, all of you in this room except for me and Steve were dead, gone. Poof.” Answered tony as he made an explosion gesture with his hands.

“The death toll at the end had reached 17.8% of the population of earth, people we were supposed to protect, to avenge, but at the end we were only five of us left against Thanos, I still don’t understand how we managed to extract the gauntlet out of Thanos’s hand, but we did, and I destroyed him and the entirety of his army. Just like that” Tony snapped his fingers and the sound was ear shattering in the total silence that reigned the room reverberating all around them. All eyes were again on Tony, but he barreled on.

“I destroyed the most powerful enemy we’ve ever encountered with only moving my fingers.”

“We had won, but at what cost, there I was sitting on the rubble of an almost destroyed New York, F.R.I.D.A.Y. displaying the footage of a half-destroyed world, cities burned to the ground, kingdoms and countries toppled like they were nothing” at that Tony looked at King T’Challa, he too had been dead along with almost entirety of Wakanda, it had been one of the worst and bloodiest attacks the earth had faced.

The king’s eyes were haunted with the memories of his country burning to the ground, not the panther, not even Bast could do anything to stop it. 

“You need to understand the magnitude of the destruction the world was facing, it would have taken us decades if not centuries to even go back to point we were before the invasion” said Tony defensively.

“it’s alright Tony, we’re not lecturing you or accusing you of anything” said Coulson voice and eyes soft.

“Sorry- force of habit, I guess” Tony saw some of the people in the room flinch at that.

But tony just continued

“then I felt this unlimited power, it was alive and definitely _not_ benevolent, I mean we knew that already, but this time it felt like it needed out like it was trapped and it needed a vessel or something to be out” Tony paused with a confused look on his face.

 

“Tones?” asked Rhodey

Tony turned his wild eyes towards the voice, his heart beating fast.

“I-I’ve felt that before, in the castle of Sokovia when we went there after Strucker, I’ve- I swear I felt it when I found the scepter, how could I forget about that, I felt that power enter me and play with my greatest fear, I- I…” Stumbled Tony as panic began to rise again.

“How could I forget about that” whispered Tony with tremble in his voice and a confused look.

The others began to look alarmed.

“F.R.I.D.A.Y. do we still have the data we retrieved from the Von Strucker Castle raid?”

**_“We do indeed Boss, shall I project it?”_ **

“Yes, but not the whole thing, start from when I got into possession of the scepter” answered Tony promptly as he wanted to get to the bottom of this

The lights of the room dimmed down as a hologram appeared in the middle of the table.

The video showed a darkened room only illuminated by computer screens, hologram and at the center of it was the infamous Scepter, from the angle of the shot it seemed to be a surveillance camera.

They could hear shots and explosions coming from outside the room, yet the room stayed intact and undisturbed, that until Tony came out descending from the staircase, they saw when he located the scepter, but his eyes seemed to drag somewhere upward and widen in surprised fear, somewhere the camera doesn’t cover.

“What was it you saw Tony” asked Natasha.

Tony cleared his throat before he answered, “It was one of those space whales that we fought in New York”.

* _Guys, I got eyes on the scepter. *_

Came Tony’s voice from the hologram.

They saw a gauntlet cover Tony’s arm as he reached for the scepter but before he could take it, two silhouettes came out from the darkness.

Wanda and Pietro Maximoff.

The avengers sat there as they watched the Scarlet witch come up behind Stark and the familiar Red tendrils came out of the hands and entered Tony’s mind, they saw as his Unnaturally reddened eyes widened in pure horror and terror they saw as his body became stiff, they saw as his mouth opened in a silent scream, and then it was over, the Maximoff twins retracted to a dark corner of the room unnoticed by tony, they saw as tony shook his head but they could still see the lingering fear as he grabbed onto the scepter and hightailed out of the room.

* _Are you really going to let them just take it._ * came the voice of Pietro.

On the video as a creepy smile crept on her face, before the video ended and the lights went back to normal.

But the tension in the room seemed to rise tenfold.

“What the _fuck_ was that” came the cold voice of Barton.

They heard a metallic groan coming from Jessica’s side as her hands bent the edges of the table.

“enough children, settle down” Cut in Fury.

“Enough? _Enough?_ We just saw one of our teammate get mind Raped by another one” Yelled Clint, eyes wide and fuming.

“Because now you care about him Barton, please spare us” said Rhodey with steel in his voice.

“I am definitely not working with her, let’s just say me and mind rapists have bad blood between us.” added Jessica

“Why didn’t you tell us Tony?” asked Rogers

Tony just shrugged “I didn’t know she did anything to me until we went to the farm and I saw this video, by then I just thought you wouldn’t believe me”

“Why wouldn’t we believe you?”

Tony snorted humorlessly “Where should I start, when have you ever believed me, you may believe Iron Man on the battlefield but Tony stark, nope, never. You believed and trusted a former enemy’s words over mine when you came barreling in the workshop and attacked me while outside of the suit, all of you didn’t do anything when big blond muscle over there basically hanged me in the air with just his arm, you didn’t believe me when time after time I told you that a threat was coming, yet all of you only rolled your eyes and called me eccentric and when I even mentioned me going through the portal you made it all about my ego because let me tell you, when I went through it I saw ships, hundreds of them outside of the portal and we were so unprepared, so _please_ tell me for what reason would I believe that you’d have believed me if I told you that your precious Wanda had had a significant hand in Ultron’s creation. So, I did the best I could and I quit the ‘team’” finished Tony with ragged breath.

The silence that settled in the room was so loud as he saw the pain that crossed Steve’s handsome features.

Steve Nodded his head.

“What did she show you? I’ve never seen you that terrified” asked Natasha with a stoic expression.

“She showed me the invasion, the one we just faced, but we were on the outside, I couldn’t do anything. You were there all of you with me” Tony was looking at his former teammates.

“You were all dead, I could still see your wide open empty eyes, cold stares and bodies, I saw you Thor, Hulk, Widow, Hawkeye all dead, like I’ve seen you die last week, Steve was still alive but barely and as I knelt before him, he grabbed my arms, and said “you could have saved us” before he too died, and then I was alone and helpless to watch earth die” everyone’s eyes were widened in horror as they all realized the implications.

“Poetic isn’t it, since that’s almost exactly what happened”

 “Tony” whispered Steve with a pained tone.

“That’s in the past now, we’re not here to discuss that, we’re here to discuss our future like Fury said, understood?” even though most of the people in the room didn’t want to move from the topic they could hear the finality in Tony’s voice as they nodded.

“Anyway, where was I?”

“You, holding the gauntlet” replied Peter helpfully, tony sent a grateful smile towards him.

“Ah yes, so there I was holding what was probably the most powerful object in the universe and I was supposed to just let it go unused, so I used it, I wished -if that’s even the right word to use- for the compete destruction of Thanos and his army, I also wished for every life they slew and every object they destroyed across the whole universe to be restored, but their powers began to overwhelm me as if they wanted to take control over my body and damn it if it weren’t working, that until captain freedom snapped me out of it” said Tony and sent a small smile towards Steve who returned looking bashful.

“Anyway, at first nothing happened then we saw buildings being put back together like someone had pressed rewind on them, and then people started groaning and waking up, that’s when I knew it worked, but the gauntlet still had to be destroyed because it still posed a threat, but it’s destruction would result in a small but powerful power release that would destroy anything and anyone in its vicinity” continued Tony

He heard Rhodey curse him under his breath and saw Steve stiffen at the realization

“We were in a pretty secluded area, not a lot of people and the ones that were there weren’t close enough to get hurt, well except for Steve anyway, so I sent him to check on you guys I had to convince him to leave me but as soon as he was out of sight I wished the destruction of the gauntlet and the restoration of the mind stone to vision, the time stone to Doctor strange and the others to be spread at the farthest places from each other across the universe, and the rest you know”

Before anyone could say anything, Coulson spoke.

“I am sure I speak for everyone here, and probably everyone out there, Thank you Tony.”

Tony felt awkward at the compliment “I- um- I didn’t do it on my own, I mean everyone played there part and at the end I couldn’t have done it without Steve ad the Guardians, and I-” Rambled Tony but before he could continue he was cut off by Fury.

“Tony, learn to goddamn take a thank you for god sakes, Thank you Tony”

Tony’s eyes widened, he wanted to refute that too, but he knew when he was beaten, he just nodded his head in acknowledgment.

“Alright, now that that’s taken care of, we can begin, anyone wants to start.”

“I would” Wasp said as she looked directly at her ex-Boyfriend, who seemed to be squirming in his seat.

“I want to know why Mr. Lang here decided out of the blue to join up to some people he barely knew against the government and become a fugitive without even looking back at what he left behind, mainly his daughter, and not only that but he stole something of my fathers to do so, thus letting us -the people who trusted him- take the blame of what he did.”

“Mrs. Pym, I-” Began Rogers.

“I believe I asked the question to Mr. Lang, I am pretty sure he can answer on his own Mr. Rogers” interrupted Hope with a cold voice eyes not wavering from Scott.

Scott looked at Hope with desperation in his eyes “I- I really don’t have a good answer to that, I- god I was so stupid” Scott closed his eyes to gather himself before opening them again and continuing, desperation not receding in the least “I was always average, I was an average student, an average man, an average engineer, an average person, a less than average husband but the only thing that I was apparently more than just average in was parenthood, from day one Cassie seemed to see more in me than anyone has ever done, she looked at me with big wide doe eyes full of awe and I had never had that look aimed at me, ever. When I did the thing that sent me to jail the first time I did it thinking of Cassie because I wanted to warrant that look, I wanted to give it reason, I was sick of being Scott Lang the average guy, I wanted to become Scott Lang the Hero, and then I met you and Mr. Pym and you believed in me, that I could become that guy, that hero, and I became Ant-Man and god was the look Cassie gave me worth it, but this time it wasn’t just her, you looked at me that way hope, and I was so happy, Maggie started to see a guy that she could be proud of to be her daughter’s father, and then Sam called me and asked me to help him and Captain America against corrupt government, and I thought to myself ‘wow if Captain America wants you in his team well that means that you really are a hero Scott’, I was so proud of myself for the first time in my life and then well you know the rest, I am so sorry hope.” He then turned towards Tony “I am so sorry Mr. Stark, I let other people judgement of you wrap mine to justify my action against you and yours, and I would understand if you say no, but I’d like to get to make up for it and to get to know the man that my daughter calls uncle”

The room was eerily quiet, the look on Hope’s face softened a little bit, Tony got to say the man looked incredibly sincere.

“Thank you, Mr. Lang, apology accepted, and I hear that you’re more than just an average engineer, I’ll be more than happy to work beside you some other time” responded Tony with a small smile, he didn’t hold any grudge or hurt towards Lang, he didn’t know the guy and he seemed like a good person.

Scott seemed surprised at that “Uh yeah- yeah, I’d love to, I swear you wont regret it, thank you Mr. Stark.”

“Okay, so that’s done” Said Coulson “Anyone else.”

 

 

 

 


End file.
